Tablas Creek has a thriving animal program that is an essential piece of the organic farming practices here at the vineyard. We are thrilled to welcome Nathan Stuart, who brings years of animal experience to Tablas Creek and who will be managing and expanding the flock alongside additional responsibilities in the vineyard and winery. His first goal: get 100% of the vineyard grazed by our flock of sheep during the off season. Down the road, once we've built up the flock, we'd also like to have Tablas Creek organic lamb to be a more regular presence on the menus of great restaurants in the Central Coast.

Nathan usually can be found amongst the animals, with his trusty sheepdog, Maya, by his side.

Where were you born and raised?I was born on Spring Street in Paso Robles. I grew up in a little yellow house there.

So you've seen Paso Robles grow exponentially over the years. Did you always like wine and the wine industry? No, I actually went down to Mexico when I was 18, and lived there until about 5 years ago. I didn't really get into wine until I met Leslie (Many of you may know Leslie, as she is one of our stellar Tasting Room leads!) and from there, making wine in Mexico.

Tablas Creek has an established animal program, but has room for growth. Where is it right now and where do you project it going?The animal program has all the right ideas, just on too small of a scale to make the impact on the vineyard it could. We've got 120 acres under vine and for us to graze 120 acres, we need a lot more sheep than we have now. I'd like to have 150 ewes eventually, that will be used for breeding, giving us at least 200 lambs per year. Also, the sheep program (in contrast to the vineyard which is certified organic) is treated organically, yet not certified. I'd like to be certified by next year; we'll probably be the first certified organic sheep producers in the county.

We have diversity of species, with llamas, alpaca, and donkeys, which helps a lot. Each animal will eat different grasses based on preference. Keeping that diversity is important because if you only have one species, they would just focus on their favorite style, allowing for some other weed to grow out of hand. Then this good plant would never get a chance to catch up and re-seed.

Why the focus on sheep?Sheep, although tricky, are a great tool that can improve soil. Managing them well by moving them frequently throughout the vineyard and keeping them in higher concentration is the most incredible way to improve soil. And by improving soil you're acquiring/retaining carbon in the soil. For example, take the buffalo grazing on the Great Plains. They've created the best soil to this day for farmland. They would move quickly across the plains, never stopping or staying in one place, as they were being chased by predators. I plan to mimic nature by moving the flock every 2-3 days, as if they were being moved by predators.

The cool thing is that the sheep can go over and graze all the grass off and then put down 0.2 cubic feet of manure per day, per animal. Right now, we've got about 88 animals out there and they are contributing several cubic feet of manure on each block every single day. Everything that they eat, mainly cover crop consisting of vetch, peas, clover, and oats, they put back as much as 90% of the nutrients back into the soil. So they only keep up to 10% to stay alive and will also grow up to a pound a day, which is insane. That's pretty awesome, to me.

What is your philosophy when it comes to animal management?For animals, it would be very low inputs, and allowing for natural selection. My focus is going to be on breeding animals that are perfect for Tablas Creek's property. So over the next 5 years, through natural selection on the property, you end up with an animal that is very healthy and adapted to this place. Which is cool, because we'll have the best sheep for Tablas Creek.

Is there one piece of your job that is particularly rewarding?Well, when a ewe is having trouble birthing and I get to help her give birth and basically, help her save a lambs life. That definitely makes your day. To actually help life become is pretty amazing and I'm definitely on Cloud 9 afterwards.

Sounds like you could have been a veterinarian in a past life! Would that be something you'd be doing if you weren't managing the animal program here?Nah, I'd take Neil's job (Neil Collins is both our Vineyard Manager and Executive Winemaker)! Kidding, no, I'd be looking for another job like this. This is pretty much what I want to do. I guess it's a good sign if I can't think of anything.

What do you like to do on your days off?Surf! I normally go North of the grade, but somewhere between Los Osos and Las Blancas. I'm also kind of a geek on the computer and into videography.

What is something that would be surprising for other people to learn about you?I was the first American to get a diploma in Mexican real estate.

One last question; how do you define success?Having peace and joy in your life. Both of those things can travel through suffering- you don't always have to be happy with where you're at to be at peace. Peace is one of those things that can translate through life, even in bad situations.

Thanksgiving is a holiday that -- even more than most -- centers around family and food. While that seems like an invitation to open that special bottle you've been saving, the diverse nature of the traditional Thanksgiving fare, much of which is somewhat sweet, challenges certain wines while also opening up a range of possible options. A common response to this has been to declare that anything goes. If you want to drink it, go ahead. And I support that, to an extent. One of my favorite things I've read around the holiday wine pairing blogosphere this year was Blake Gray's simple 5-question "Is this wine good for Thanksgiving" quiz on his blog the Gray Report. No matter what multiple-choice boxes you check, as far as I can tell, the answer is yes.

Still, I do think that some wines tend to be better than others, and lean myself toward flexible, lower-alcohol, lower-oak reds, and rich whites. Or rosé! In fact, Rhone-style wines fit alll these bills. Rhone reds tend to be fruity and open-knit, while the whites tend to be rich but unoaked. All these characteristics are friendly with a Thanksgiving dinner. The fact that over the years nearly a dozen different newspapers have suggested Tablas Creek wines for Thanksgiving -- and that the suggestions have been for our reds, for our whites, and for our rosé -- suggests a certain affinity.

To get a sense of some of the different options out there, I thought it would be fun to ask different members of the Tablas Creek team to share what they're pairing with their Thanksgiving feasts this year (whether Tablas Creek or otherwise). Here is what they shared, in their own words, in alphabetical order:

Neil Collins, Executive WinemakerI will be seeking out an older Esprit Blanc, maybe 2002, as those wines are showing so beautifully with age. I also have a 2004 Chinon in magnum which i am looking forward to, the large format bottles are good fun at the big family table. There is a strong possibility that there will be cider present as well!! Happy holidays to all.

Darren Delmore, National Sales ManagerWith the joys of parenting little ones both stricken with Hand, Food and Mouth disease, our out-of-town travel plans have been replaced with Ebola-like home confinement in Templeton. Thus, my only defense is to cook and sip something stellar, which will be local rabbit carnitas matched with 2007 Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc and my last bottle of 2015 Domaine Tempier Bandol Rosé.

Brad Ely, Cellar Team MemberFor my Thanksgiving table this year, I plan to start with a fun California sparkling. Not only does it put everyone in a festive mood, it also pairs well with a variety of foods. Something like the Roederer Estate Brut with its fresh acidity and underlying fruit will do nicely. As a general crowd pleaser with an affordable price tag, I might have to make it a Magnum.

As far as reds go, a fruit driven Grenache based blend like our Cotes de Tablas Rouge is the perfect fit. With heaps of freshness and elegance, it is sure to hold up to the array of flavors on the Thanksgiving table without overpowering anything. A bottle of Beaujolais will probably be making an appearance as well!

Evelyne Fodor, Tasting Room Team LeadFor my Thanksgiving meal this year, I am choosing Esprit de Tablas Blanc 2014. I knows that it is an unusual choice, and an expensive one considering the good number of my refugee friends with whom I am going to share it. But context is queen here: Thanksgiving is my most cherished holiday. As a first generation immigrant, French native, this is the occasion to participate to the most meaningful and comforting American ritual. Wine has to raise to the occasion.

I love how the freshness, vibrancy and complexity shows through in this Esprit Blanc. And 2014 is an especially powerful vintage. I am going to pair the wine with my classic Watercress Velouté, a silky French soup known for its slight bitterness, peppery flavor and vibrant green color. The honey crisp apple and citrus blossom of the wine will pair beautifully with this creamy dish. Starting with a wine so full of energy works especially well, considering that the meal is likely to go on for hours.

There is also a great probability that my guests will bring mostly reds. My Esprit Blanc will shine even more.

John Morris, Tasting Room ManagerI had a frightening dream last night. We had sold out of Counoise at the winery just before Thanksgiving! After singing the praises of this wine to our guests as perfect for Thursday night’s feast, it looked like I was coming home empty handed. While there are plenty of good choices, I had my heart set on our 2014 Counoise, with its light red fruit, low tannin, exuberant nose and spicy finish. Quickly I hatched a plan to quietly fill a barrel sample from the 2015 vintage and take it home as a prize. Surely no would notice a mere 750 ml missing! As in all dreams, the winery looked quite a bit different that does in reality. The barrels were protected by foreboding barbed wire, and there were sentries posted everywhere, not one of whom I recognized. I gathered my strength, and relayed to one of these guards that Neil had authorized a barrel sample for a special customer. His withering glare and raised eyebrows said it all, and more, and I hastily retreated, tripping and getting tangled up in a roll of barbed wire. As I struggled to free myself, I woke up tugging on my sheets, and realized I’d been dreaming. I got up in search of a glass of cold water when I saw it in the moonlight: A six-bottle box of 2014 Counoise I’d brought home that day, patiently waiting for Thanksgiving evening. And while the wine isn’t sold out, it’s getting low and won’t last long. We’ll be at the winery until 5:00 on Wednesday if you want to treat your friends and family.

Lauren Phelps, Marketing CoordinatorThanksgiving at my parent’s house is like a large family reunion once a year. My mom rents tables and chairs and goes all out decorating and buying food for the more than twenty of us that gather. There are only a handful of special occasions when I venture down to their basement, where I keep my cellared wine to age, to resurrect a couple of special bottles to share with my more discerning wine loving family members. This year, I’m starting out the meal with a 2006 Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc with its elegance and earthy notes to pair with roasted vegetables and turkey, then a few 2010 Esprit de Beaucastel: a complex and food friendly red to pair with the entirety of delectable goodies overflowing the plate.

Suphada Rom, Sales & MarketingI want something that's on the lighter side with bright acidity. And because Thanksgiving is a marathon, not a sprint, reaching for something that is relatively low in alcohol is a good idea. I really love our Counoise. Warm with high tones of currant, pomegranate, and baking spice, this wine is literally Fall in a glass.

Another choice would be Gamay. I am a huge fan of the different Crus of Beaujolais, Morgon being a favorite of mine. Foillard produces one called “Corcelette” which I think is pretty stunning. Well balanced with “gobs of strawbs”, along with tons of gorgeous floral aromas. And I love the acidity because it sort of sneaks up on, like that post-Thanksgiving nap you’re sure to succumb to.

Amanda Weaver, Tasting Room Team LeadI’m not in-charge of dinner this thanksgiving, but if I were, I would be roasting a leg of lamb with rosemary and garlic and enjoying a full glass of our 2011 Esprit de Tablas. That’s what I did last year and it was magical! So much earthy goodness between the juicy meat of the lamb and the wet forest/gamey notes of our smoky 2011 Esprit! Perfection!!!

Now I shall be disappointed by any other meal set before me this year…. C’est le vie!!

MeAs for me, I'll be eating with my parents, so it looks like it's the 2005 Esprit de Beaucastel for me. And I'm sure I'll be very happy with that. But when we host Thanksgiving at our house, my rule is that we open the largest bottle we have, whatever it is. Nothing says celebration like a 3L bottle, after all. And maybe, fundamentally, that's my admission that Blake Gray is right.

My dad generally avoids the spotlight. So it was particularly nice to read a wonderful article on his career that was published this week by Warren Johnston in the Valley News, a daily newspaper serving the portion of the Connecticut River Valley where he and my mom spend their summers.

Most readers of the Tablas Creek blog likely know him from his impact on the world of Rhone grape varieties, both from his long history representing Beaucastel and the other wines made by the Perrin Family, and from his work with the Perrins in bringing Tablas Creek Vineyard into existence. That work -- and particularly the decision to make available the high quality Rhone clones that we imported into the United States -- was influential enough to earn him a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014 from the Rhone Rangers.

This article focused equally on other aspects of his career, particularly his time with Vineyard Brands when he ran one of America's most influential wine import companies out of a converted barn in a Vermont town of 2700 residents. We still have this poster hanging in our tasting room:

His career in wine has spanned nearly seven decades, and has included stints in nearly every aspect of the industry. A few highlights:

As a retailer, he worked with his father at M. Lehmann in Manhattan to offer the first-ever futures offering on Bordeaux.

As an importer, he built a company in Vineyard Brands that added dynamic brands like La Vieille Ferme and Marques de Caceres to his venerable list of estate producers. This balance of estate wines and larger brands (unique at its time) gave the company the diversified range of products that allowed it to thrive across different economic cycles.

When he was ready to retire and invest in Tablas Creek, rather than sell the company, he was one of the first American small businessmen to use an employee stock ownership plan to turn the company over to its employees. Today the company continues to thrive, with much of the senior leadership hired two and even three decades ago by him.

He co-founded Winebow with Leonardo Locascio and Peter Matt in 1980, to provide Vineyard Brands with a high quality wholesaler in New York. Winebow has grown to be an influential importer as well as a distribution powerhouse.

His work in founding the Tablas Creek nursery -- and his decision not to keep the clones we'd imported proprietary -- has allowed California's Rhone movement to blossom in a way otherwise impossible. More than 600 vineyards and wineries around the United States use Tablas Creek cuttings.

In writing that list, I was struck by the extent to which the things he creates (or helps create) outlive his involvement with them. That's a testament to his determination in putting companies on a firm foundation, as well as his judgment in choosing people to work with and, when necessary, to succeed him.

One of my great pleasures in working here at Tablas Creek has been to get to see my dad through the eyes of the many people he has influenced. Yesterday's article was a good reminder for me that as he gets ready to enter his tenth decade, his influence is as enduring as ever.

[Editor's Note: I am very excited to share my mom's first contribution to the Tablas Creek blog. She has been an active partner in this project from the beginning, and the source of many of our best ideas (such as in making our first rosé back in 1999). While this is her first blog, she had a hand in much of the written material we produced in the early days of Tablas Creek. I look forward to many more entries. Thank you to the Windham Hill Inn, which took and shared the photos that appear with this piece.]

Being in the wine business means being in the business of giving pleasure. We want our wines to taste good and to improve the moments in which they are served. In order for us to do this, we frequently depend on the shared experience of good food. The way that wine and food speak to each other is critically important to the appreciation of both. Think of musical instruments either in tune or not.

As someone who has been privileged to share a large number of “winemaker” dinners (dinners designed to highlight wine and food), I am reflecting on a recent experience which was one of the best I have had, and I have thought a lot about why this was true.

The lineup of wines for the dinner

The beautiful, historic Windham Hill Inn and Restaurant in Townshend, VT, has been a steadfast supporter of Tablas Creek wines and owns several vintages in their cellar. To get there, you really have to know where it is! A 30-minute drive from our house in Chester, the inn is tucked into a beautiful property at the end of a dirt road, and is totally peaceful and quiet. The flagstone pathway is bordered by an array of lilies and hydrangeas, and the double entrance doorway (to keep out gusts of snow in the winter) leads you into a warm reception area, which could easily be in a French auberge. Lots of polished wood, warm fabrics and comfortable furniture surround a small bar area and awaken your sense of anticipation for the aperitif and dinner to follow.

The Windham Hill Inn's beautiful setting and entrance

Windham Hill Inn has created dinners to highlight our wines at least eight years in a row, and in my opinion, each year better than the last. This year’s was a triumph: focused, generous, and original.

Robert Haas, speaking at the dinner. Barbara Haas sits behind him.

The food was not heavy. I was still as eager for the fourth course as I was for the first. With each course, I was delighted by discovery: on my plate and in my glass. The wines and their paired dishes sang in harmonious duets.

The dinner menu

The harmony gave each element more than either had alone. It was a remarkable experience. For example: a perfectly cooked piece of swordfish was accompanied by charred green onion, grilled pineapple, sesame and ginger. Each element found a responding taste in the Tablas Esprit Blanc 2012. I marvel at the talent which first recognizes the elements of taste in a wine, and then goes and finds a food which highlights that taste.

Another example was herb-rubbed Vermont lamb loin, with baby bok choy, and fermented black bean and garlic sauce. The sauces throughout the meal had clean, clear flavors but no heaviness. In the case of the lamb, the sauce was a simple, clear “jus”. The rare lamb and its deep-flavored sauce gave the Mourvèdre 2011 ample room and encouragement to express itself.

The chef showed both intelligence and generosity by keeping his dishes focused and simple; in other words, not so tarted up with heavy sauces and irrelevant flavors that they dominated the wine. This is not an easy job. Home cooks and professionals alike tend to make food too complicated and “loud” when they are trying to impress, what I like to call “high-decibel food.” The same tendency happens in wine making.

The second plated course: Maine lobster with a watermelon and heirloom tomato salad

Achieving balance and harmony is challenging but eminently more satisfying, and makes a diner want to come back for more. A professional taster may recognize each achievement of the chef and winemaker. A non-professional will simply have a wonderful, satisfying dining experience, without needing to analyze why.

Thank you and congratulations to Chef David Crone and Wine Director Dan Pisarczyk of Windham Hill Inn for discovering the hidden secrets in our Tablas Creek wines and bringing them to light and value.

[Editor's Note: With this blog, we welcome Evelyne Fodor to the blog. She is a woman of many accomplishments, including a PhD in French (she is a French instructor for the UCLA Extension), a tremendous chef, and a lover of food and wine. Evelyne has become one of Tablas Creek's best-loved wine consultants and made many fans in our tasting room. This is her first blog piece.]

One of the most frequently asked questions at the tasting room is also one of my favorites. “Which food do I pair with this wine?” At Tablas Creek we take food pairing very seriously. For each of our wines we offer recipes and food pairing suggestions. Each spring and fall, we invite our members to taste dishes created by local chefs to match our new releases. We also have a monthly column on our Tablas blog dedicated to this topic.

When one has an eclectic, adventurous palate however, food pairing becomes a very elusive topic. The other day, long-time club members Tom and Karen from Atascadero showed me a picture of an Ethiopian dish they enjoyed and asked me for suggestions on which of our wines to pair with it. If, like Tom and Karen, you love experimenting with regional cuisines such as Indian, Thai, Ethiopian, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese or Moroccan - cuisines with high flavors but notably not associated with wines - the topic is worth exploring.

I am by no means a specialist but in our wine and food-centric community we have an in-depth understanding of both spices and wines. I asked three local experts, Lori Di Ciaccio-Foster the owner of Spice of Life in Paso, Brigit Binns owner of cooking school and B&B Refugio and Neeta Mittal, owner of the boutique winery LXV to explain the complicated relationship between spices and wines.

Fascinated by what she refers to as the “mystery of spices,” Lori brings spices from all over the world and blends them in the back kitchen of her small shop. For her, the fusion between spices and wine is striking: “Blending and harmonizing spices to create vibrant flavors satisfies the mind as well as the palate.” She explained that “each spice captures unique flavors, aromas, and emotions which can pinpoint a specific region or culture.” Like wines, spices thrive best in very specific regions where natural conditions create a unique terroir.

Next door to Spice of Life is Neeta Mittal’s LXV Wine Lounge. With its deep blue walls, day beds full of vibrant colors and plush pillows, the place is a “sensory experience.” Neeta was born and raised in Kerala, "God's own country," a southern state of India also known as the "Land of Spices." Besides its famous backwaters, elegant houseboats, ayurveda treatments and wild elephants, Kerala is also famous for delicately spiced, taste-bud-tingling cuisine. When Neeta is not involved with her winery, she explores the principles of Ayurveda, vegetarianism and veganism: “As we become more demanding of flavors and more intuitive about our health, spices once thought to be exotic are making an exciting splash in the culinary world.”

My last expert is my friend Brigit Binns, the acclaimed author of multiple cookbooks, including The New Wine Country Cookbook: Recipes from California’s Central Coast, in which every recipe is paired with a Central Coast wine. Recently I met with several of Tablas Creek's wine club members at her Refugio for a class called “The Rosé Less Travelled," with chef Clark Staub, featuring both our Dianthus and Patelin de Tablas Rosé wines. It's also at Refugio that last May Neeta led a three-part cooking series to explore the flavors of Indian cooking and how they partner with Rhône varieties (beautifully!). Brigit is currently working on a new book project called “Wine First: A Cookbook for Wine Lovers;” her concept is simple: “First, you choose the wine."

So we did! One evening at home, John Morris, Tablas Creek tasting room manager, Neeta and myself lined up a few Tablas wines and started a discussion on the ideal wine pairing. We selected five whites: Cotes de Tablas Blanc 2014, Esprit de Tablas Blanc 2012, Petit Manseng 2014, Vermentino 2015 and Picpoul Blanc 2014. For the reds, we picked most of our Spring shipment including Esprit de Tablas 2011, 2012 and 2013. And at the last minute I added our newest release Terret Noir 2014. I did not include our two rosés, because they simply are too easy to pair with almost anything. Our challenge was to find affinities in both Tablas wines and regional dishes to create a perfect flavor pairing. We knew the style of cuisines would differ greatly based on climate and available local ingredients but certain spices such as coriander, cumin, cardamom, star anise and turmeric are common to all them.

John has a deep knowledge of our wines and he has also become an expert in Thai food, as his wife Christina was born and raised in Thailand. He quickly singled out Vermentino 2015. Vermentino is a white medium-bodied wine that grows mostly on the islands of Corsica and Sardinia as well as in Provence where it is known as Rolle. With its somewhat exotic character, citrusy aromas, minerality and crisp acidity, Vermentino is very much appreciated by our guests. It also pairs very well with Asian dishes that play with the Star Anise spice such as Asian Style Shrimp.

If for John the choice was simple and straightforward, it took Neeta more time and a few more tastings to figure out which of our wines would be ideal for her Southern Indian dish. She finally chose Esprit de Tablas 2012 which she described as “having a long and complex palate, with flavors of black raspberry, plum compote and leather.” The moderate alcohol content and gentle tannins with nice fruit and spicy flavors was, according to Neeta, an ideal marriage with her delicately spiced, taste-bud-tingling Tharavu (Duck Dry Curry).

When it was my turn, my first impulse was to pick Petit Manseng 2012 for its rich sweetness, stonefruit characters and sweet spice, which I thought would pair beautifully with my mom’s Moroccan chicken tagine. The word tagine refers to both the conical-shaped dish and the food that's cooked inside it, which in this case is braised chicken flavored with saffron, turmeric, preserved lemon and olives. Moroccan cuisine has long been integrated into the French culinary tradition due to its colonial history. There is a natural continuity in choosing a Rhône style wine with a Moroccan dish since they both hail from Mediterranean climates. My mom’s tagine is a dish especially well suited here as Morocco shares the same latitude as Paso Robles.

Instead, I choose the Terret Noir 2014, our newest wine. We know very little about the Terret Noir grape, except that it’s a blending partner used in the southern Rhône Valley for red Châteauneuf du Pape wines. It is praised for its "qualities of lightness, freshness, and bouquet" which reminds me of Beaujolais’ Gamay grape. Like Gamay, Terret Noir is pale in color, low in alcohol with bright fruity flavors and a wonderful distinctive herbal aroma reminiscent of garrigue, the low, scrubby vegetation that grows around the Mediterranean coast. The wine’s relatively high acidity made the natural bitterness of preserved lemons and green olives a bit too aggressive, so I simply added (oh mon dieu!) a bit of crème fraîche.

With that in mind, turn up the heat and drink some of our suggestions with all the wonderful African, Asian, Caribbean and fusion dishes that you like! This is the great way to learn and make your own decision about which Tablas Creek wine pairs best with your tastes.

Tharavu / Duck Dry Curry A dish from the South of India

Neeta Mittal, LXV Wine Lounge

A few notes before we begin:

Always try to grind spices fresh. Spices sitting on your shelf have probably lost their essence.

Use a whole duck, if possible, but you can always substitute duck breasts

Curry Leaves can be found in an Indian store. You could use a couple of bay leaves with some lime zest, but it won't be the same as curry leaves. I have cooked this dish WITHOUT curry leaves and still tastes great.

Use small Green chilies like Thai chilies.

You can always email me for ordering just enough spices for this dish, including the curry leaves (neeta@lxvwine.com)

Guideline for pairing with Indian food: low alcohol, low tannin, low oak, high acidity, young fruit

INGREDIENTS

1 full duck (skinned and cut into medium pieces and fat removed)

For Marinade:

Turmeric Powder : 1/2 tsp

Red Chili Powder : 3 tsp or to your spice level

Coriander Powder : 4 tsp

Whole Spices:

Cloves: 4 – 5

Cardamom: 1

Cinnamon stick: 1 inch

Bay leaves: 1-2

Slightly crushed whole pepper corns: 1/2 tsp

For Gravy:

Onion: 2 large (finely sliced)

Tomatoes: 2 (finely chopped)

Dried Whole Red Chilies: 4-5, each broken into two pieces

Mustard Seeds: 2 tsp

Curry Leaves: few

Green Chilies: 8-10 or to your spice level (slit, lengthwise)

Coconut Oil: 4 tbsp

Ghee: 2 tsp

Tamarind: 1 tbsp OR Vinegar: 1 tsp

Ginger: 2 tbsp (chopped)

Garlic: 2 tbsp (chopped)

Coconut milk: 1 cup

DIRECTIONS

Marinate the cleaned duck pieces with the marinade for at least 2 hours.

Heat coconut oil and ghee in a heavy-bottomed pan.

Add mustard seeds and when it starts to splutter, dried red chili, and whole spices. Sauté for a few minutes.

Add tomatoes and sauté for a few more minutes, until the oil separates from the tomatoes

Add 1/2 cup of water, tamarind (or vinegar), the marinated duck pieces, and salt to taste. Cover and cook for 20 minutes or until the duck is half-done, stirring once or twice in between. Open and cook for 5 minutes at high heat until the gravy almost dries up, stirring in between so that it won’t stick to the bottom.

Pour in the coconut milk into half cooked duck and adjust the salt. Lower heat and simmer gently until the curry changes to a brown color and oil starts floating on top. (The coconut milk should get cooked and release coconut oil).

Serve Tharavu curry with hot Basmati Rice

Pair with a glass of slightly chilled 2012 Esprit de Tablas

My Mom’s Tagine

Evelyne Fodor, Tablas Creek Wine Consultant

INGREDIENTS

6 chicken legs and 6 chicken thighs

Kosher salt

1 to 3 tablespoons of oil

5 cups thinly sliced yellow onions

2 tablespoons ground coriander

2 teaspoons ground white pepper

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon saffron threads

½ teaspoon ground turmeric

1½ cup chicken stock

6 quarters preserved lemons

½ cup pitted green olives

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoons chopped leaf parsley

2 teaspoons chopped cilantro

Generously salt the chicken pieces on all sides. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour.

DIRECTIONS

Heat 1 tablespoon of the fat in the bottom of your Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook, turning once, for 3 or 4 minutes on each side, until they are well browned. Remove browned pieces from the pan and add the next batch, continuing until all the pieces are browned. Remove all chicken pieces to a plate.

Add oil and onions and sauté on medium high heat, stirring often and adjusting the heat as necessary, for 15 minutes, or until they are a rich golden brown.

Preheat the oven to 350F. Add the spices and a pinch of salt to the onions and stir constantly for about 2 minutes to lightly toast the spices. Return the chicken to the pan, pour in the chicken stock, and bring to a boil.

Cover the tagine, transfer to the oven, and cook for 40 minutes, or until the chicken is tender and is beginning to pull away from the ends. Remove the chicken from the pan.

Return the tagine to a burner and simmer for about 3 minutes to reduce the sauce. Add the lemons and olives. When they are hot, whisk in the butter, parsley, and cilantro.

I spent a lovely, spring afternoon on the wisteria-adorned patio discussing with John Morris the journey that has brought him to the role of Tasting Room Manager at Tablas Creek Vineyard. John has been with Tablas Creek since 2006, was instrumental in the design of our new tasting room, and continues to lead a growing and diverse team of tasting room personnel as we try to keep providing memorable experiences to the over 30,000 people who come to visit us each year.

Where were you born and raised?I was born and raised in Flint, Michigan, a town that’s been in the news a lot lately. Later I actually lived on the Flint River; the river in question was in our backyard. We canoed in it, we skated on it, we fished in it (but we didn’t eat the fish), we hunted snakes and frogs down there but we didn’t swim in it, it was too polluted.

When and how did you get into wine?I first got into wine when I was living in Seattle, where I lived most of my adult life. I started getting into wine because I lived in a neighborhood with a nice little wine shop. I was most interested in European wines because they were inexpensive. Washington wines were available but they were expensive so I drank a ton of Rhones. Buying Cotes du Rhones were my go-tos; I could spend between $10 and $15 for wines that were quite good.

What has been your career path to where you are?Because I didn’t plan at all and didn’t go to college, I wanted to be a musician and ended up in retail. Which led me into the coffee business, because I lived in Seattle and eventually into management in that field and did that for quite a while. The little coffee chain I worked for got bought by Starbucks and I worked for them for a short time but it quickly became untenable. So I went to work at DeLaurenti, an Italian import store that friends of mine had bought, which had a wine department that I talked myself into working at. I did that for about a year before I moved here to Paso. I knew I wanted to move to a warmer place, I knew I wanted to stay on the west coast, I knew I wanted to live somewhere rural but kind of cool, so wine country made sense. And it was just a matter of which location, so I moved to Paso and jumped right into the wine industry here.

In your view, what makes the Tablas Creek tasting room special?The history of who we are and where we came from, working with Bob Haas, the people who work here, the wines. I guess that’s what makes it special to me. What makes it special to visitors may be more of your question. I think the way we’re set up, not just one long bar, makes a lot of sense. I think the customer service ethos that has trickled down from management to me to my staff makes it special.

What’s your biggest challenge as a Tasting Room Manager?Making a schedule juggling up to twenty people, with many people who are part time or work in other departments, they’re seasonal, and they’re needed at different times in the wine club or the cellar. We all have different needs at different times. You know, managing people is both rewarding and can have its challenges so that’s a big challenge- having a big crew and keeping them together on the same path. Saturdays (our busiest day of the week) trying to let people come in to enjoy themselves without it getting too loud and disruptive for the serious wine buyers is key.

Which are your other favorite wineries and tasting rooms locally or around the state?I don’t get out as much as I used to now that I’m a parent. There are a lot of great wineries, I think Denner is making really great wines, Terry Hoage is making great wine. The new tasting room at Halter Ranch is pretty spectacular. When I’m out looking for wines I’m looking for things you can’t find here, European wines that I miss. I love Arcadian down in Santa Barbara county, I still love what Bonny Doon does. Those are just a couple that stand out.

What’s your favorite wine region in the world – other than your own?I would choose one region only is would be Piemonte in Northern Italy, home of the Nebbiolo grape, Barolo, Barbaresco, Dolcettos, Barbera, Arneis. I love how they tend to be light in weight but heavy in flavor if that make any sense… I love the acidity of Italian wines: the fact that they don’t coat your palate but they have great depth of flavor and they go well with a lot of the foods that I like.

How do you spend your days off?Working around the house and in the garden. We’ve had a hobby farm, a little market garden for the last several years. I like working outside more than anything.

What would people be surprised to know about you?I used to play really kind of obscure free-jazz/Prog-rock music and it used to be the main part of my life. I played electric bass in Seattle starting when I was about 25 until I was about 45. I’m attracted to pretty obscure music which is probably why I never made any money at it.

If you weren’t managing a tasting room for a living, what would you be doing?What would I like to be doing? If I had started earlier and owned more property, maybe an organic farmer. Maybe if I had been a starving farmer like I had been a starving musician, I could have made that happen.

How do you define success?Success is happiness. That’s all there is to it… finding what makes you happy. The thing that’s really interesting is when you get older, you find that that changes. I’ve found that a couple of times in my life, what was working beautifully, I couldn’t understand that it wasn’t working anymore… so you have to shift. I think staying on that path where you’re satisfying what makes you happy which I think is having enough good friends, making enough money to live comfortably and enjoying what you’re doing every day to make a living.

It was with great pleasure that I sat down with Vineyard Manager David Maduena to find out more about his 24-year career at Tablas Creek. David is the longest-tenured member of our team, beginning as a part of our first crews working to establish the nursery and vineyard programs. He's normally a man of few words, and it was a treat to find out more about him and to learn from him how Tablas Creek has changed in the almost quarter-century he has been here.

I found a filing cabinet full of old photos, still on slides. This one is David circa 1994.

Where were you born and raised?

I was born in Durango City, Mexico and lived there until I was 15 years old. I came to Paso Robles when I was 15 and lived with my parents and siblings.

Can you tell me a little about how you started working at Tablas Creek?

I started working in the local vineyards all around the area- a week or two here and there. I helped plant and add irrigation lines to Mount Mourvedre in 1992. I began working permanently here in 1993 when we started building the quonset huts and expanded the nursery project. [Editor's note: we published an archive of photos from those early years, one of which shows David manning a backhoe for an early irrigation trench, late last year.]

What is your general vineyard management philosophy?

I always look to do the best for the vineyard. I deal with a lot of different things in the vineyard from gopher control to managing a crew of between 7 and 30 people and I just try to keep everything in control.

What do you think about organic farming?

I think organic is good, it helps to not put a lot of chemicals in the soil- everything is natural so you’re not killing the soil, you’re helping it. And it’s better for the crew, they don’t have to wear special protective gear to keep them safe.

What’s your biggest challenge as a Vineyard Manager?

The biggest challenge is to take care of everything out there. I have to deal with a lot of different people and it’s not easy to find a good way to talk to the crew. Some supervisors are mean to the workers but that’s not good for them and not good for us.

How do you spend your days off?

I like to play soccer or basketball with my kids. I have 7 kids and they are always playing something. I spend most of my time off with my family.

If you weren’t growing wine grapes for a living, what would you be doing?

I went to school to learn to become an electrician or I’d like to do welding. I think that would be fun and I have some skill for those things.

What do you like about working at Tablas Creek?

I like working with nice people that’s the main thing. I feel comfortable here.

How do you define success?

Success to me is to make progress in life. You start from the bottom, like I did. I was just a normal worker, now I’ve been here so many years that they trust me and made me a Vineyard Manager and now I have more responsibility and take care of the whole place. I think that is success.

In 1989 The Perrin family and the Haas family bought a 120 acre pasture in Adelaida that was to become Tablas Creek Vineyard, named for the eponymous creek that flowed through the property. I took over the management.

In 2002 my son Jason, fresh from a stint in the east coast’s tech world, arrived in Paso Robles and started working at Tablas Creek, focusing initially on our marketing and increasingly on our management. Although Jason has taken over the day-to-day operations here, I'm still working because I enjoy our working together. It's fun. His leadership here and his accomplishments at the vineyard and in the community delight me.

Last Friday, the Paso Robles wine community came together at the Paso Wine Country Alliance's annual Winter Gala to honor Jason for “outstanding contributions toward the success of the Paso Robles wine industry”. He was named the 2015 Paso Robles Wine Industry Person of the Year:

Jason with State Assemblyman Katcho Achadjian (left) and State Senator Bill Monning (right) and the decree passed by the Californa legislature

A healthy Tablas Creek contingent gathered to help celebrate

It was fun to hear the wine community recognize his accomplishments in the fourteen years he has been working here. They have been significant!

He started this blog back in 2005 and has been its principal author for a decade now. It has been a finalist for “Best Winery Blog” seven of the last eight years and won in 2008 and 2011. The blog helped establish us as leaders in the wine community and himself as a source for media with thoughts worth seeking out.

His writing on the blog has led to invitations to contribute pieces on Paso Robles and Rhone varieties to Wine Business Monthly, Wines & Vines, Wine Industry Network, and Zester Daily, and to regular appearances on radio and television.

He established the Paso Robles Rhone Rangers chapter in 2007 and led it for the next several years. In that period, it grew from 15 members to 50 members and helped establish Paso Robles as the epicenter of California’s Rhone movement.

He has represented Paso Robles, Rhone grape varieties, and Tablas Creek to industry groups including the American Wine Society, the AIWF, the Unified Symposium, and the Society of Wine Educators, and has been a regular guest lecturer to classes and student groups at Cal Poly and Fresno State, spreading the word about our region and our winery to the next generation of wine consumers and wine professionals.

He has had, I feel, a particularly significant impact on the Rhone Rangers. When he joined the board in 2004, it was an organization whose sole footprint was one tasting a year in San Francisco. He pushed the group to expand its Bay Area event to include a greater educational component and a winemaker dinner and auction. He also led the charge to add additional events, including an annual Los Angeles tasting and “road show” visits to Seattle, Chicago, New York, and Washington DC. The category of California Rhones has made amazing strides in the last decade, in part thanks to the work of Jason and the rest of the Rhone Rangers leadership.

Jason’s support of Tablas Creek’s role in the creation of and advocacy for the 11 new Paso Robles AVAs helped distill a complicated story into a comprehensible message of why this is a good thing for the region.

I visited a while with our National Sales Manager Darren Delmore to get the inside scoop about the wine business from his very unique perspective. Darren has a fascinating past as a published writer, professional surfer, winemaker and now travels the country educating people about Tablas Creek wine. Darren is also is a husband, and a father of two adorable children, Shea and Canyon.

Where were you born and raised?

I was born in San Luis Obispo, California and grew up in Arroyo Grande and Shell Beach.

When and how did you get into wine?

I started with working in restaurants; both my parents owned restaurants while I was growing up. I went to a distributor tasting when I was 21 with local wineries and it blew me away. Then I found myself growing more and more interested in wine. That set me off on a path to learn how to make wine for the next ten years.

What has been your career path to where you are?

My first harvest position was in Humboldt County, of all places. I worked there for two years followed by a complete harvest internship at Bonny Doon. From there I moved back to the Central Coast and started working in tasting rooms at Eberle and managed the tasting room for Saucelito Canyon. Tasting rooms are another piece of the industry that was new to me and that was interesting. I also found myself, after a few years, wanting to get back into making wine. So I went to live in the middle of nowhere in Cazadero and worked for the Hirsch family. It was an hour to the grocery store, there was no internet in my little cabin, and there was no phone service… it was a decompression time. Also, I completed two-hemisphere harvests for two years in a row in Australia and that kind of completed everything I wanted to know about making wine. Even with all that experience it would have been difficult to get a winemaker position without a degree in oenology. So when I was up for an assistant position and Jillian and I had our first baby on the way, I ran into Tommy Oldre, the previous National Sales Manager for Tablas Creek. Tommy had just accepted a new position at Vineyard Brands and he suggested I apply for the open position at Tablas Creek. I had always wanted to work at Tablas Creek so I jumped at the opportunity. It was a frantic summer, I was up for two jobs, an assistant winemaking position in Anderson Valley and the sales position at Tablas Creek, plus we were 8 months pregnant with our first child. Surprisingly, I heard back from both jobs on the same day! We talked it over and I accepted the Tablas Creek position on August 1st. I started the job on August 6th and we had our baby Shea on August 18th… 2012 was a whirlwind year!

What are your main responsibilities at Tablas Creek?

The main responsibilities are scheduling market work with distributors on a monthly basis, traveling to those appointments, bringing the new wines and tasting them with sommeliers, wine directors, and shop owners. We invest a lot to go out to work the market for a three day stretch and the pre-planning is huge; the work that we do there is key because we’re meeting 5-6 individuals a day and I can’t come off being short with someone at the end. We’ve got a short period of time and you’ve got to connect with people on those days in a unique way so they will have a better experience. I focus on conquering the agenda that’s been set for me in the morning and try to be cheery and try to relay the story and the wines in a personalized way for everyone.

What new industry trends are you most excited about, and why?

I’m seeing smaller wine lists that are often times one page next to the food menu. I’m seeing smaller menus with more well chosen wines from around the world with lower mark-ups. There are more restaurant concepts that are appealing to the “millennial diners” where you’re not handed the tomes of a wine list anymore that are 100 pages. You’re seeing these really cool restaurants that are popping up with less large entree portions, more small plates, more fun, looks more affordable with wine lists that are just more adventurous and encompass the whole world.

Another trend I’ve been seeing is an expansion in the keg wine programs at restaurants. I think that’s also offering a value and a way of thinking about wine seasonally. People are maybe paying more attention to what to drink at certain times of the year.

What’s your biggest challenge as a Sales Manager and Wine Educator?

One of the biggest challenges is getting the distributors to continue the momentum we start when we do our week in the market. So that falls into the follow up of these trips and how to do that effectively. That’s probably the biggest challenge. If you remember something that rep was into that you were into… it’s important to find non-superficial ways to stay connected with those people. Because we’re so small… and for some of these distributors, they’re bombarded with eighty people, large brands too, in a month and finding a way to stay on their radar and keep them excited about Tablas is challenging.

What would you change about the wine industry if you could, and why?

I would lower the intimidation level for consumers. There are still people who are scared to go wine tasting because they feel like they might not have enough money, or a certain type of lifestyle that make them feel comfortable doing it. Honesty, I think a lot of people didn’t know what wine tasting was until the movie Sideways came out. I do think there is still a level of intimidation and I see folks working in the wine business who aren’t as eager to see the intimidation lessened. So I would like to see that happen. There is so much more information available now but there is still a disconnect about how wine is made and what goes into it.

What’s your favorite wine region in the world – other than Paso Robles?

My favorite wine region overall would be the Rhône, rather than just one district of it, there are pockets of it that are incredibly undervalued and I think there is a lot of mystery to all the different villages and regions that keep the prices down and I think they’re the best value overall for what you get if you can figure out what you like and how to get them. With a lot of domestic regions and the more famous regions you’re just never going to get that and so I think the Rhône still delivers.

How do you spend your days off?

That has certainly changed a lot over time. I used to spend my days off surfing. But now I spend so much time traveling that when I’m home I have to give Jillian, my wife, a much needed break. My days off now are with the kids. And most of those days are spent just doing dishes.

What would people be surprised to know about you?

I worked at a tofu factory in Arcata California. I was the “curdler”… they hired be because I have long arms, on the spot.

If you weren’t working in the wine industry for a living, what would you be doing?

There’s a good quote from Planes, Trains and Automobiles on that one, “Like your work, love your wife”. Because you’ve got to balance it all. If you’re doing something you’re passionate about and you can keep that in balance, that’s success.

Editor's Note: This is the second interview in a series that we hope will help readers get to know the key people at Tablas Creek a little better. If you have questions for Chelsea, please leave them in the comments.

By: Lauren Phelps

I recently sat down with Chelsea and asked her a few questions about her life, what brought her into the wine industry and how she became an essential member of the Tablas Creek family.

Where were you born and raised?

I grew up in El Dorado Hills, the Sierra Foothills of California in an area between Tahoe and Sacramento. Which is now an exceptional wine growing region but when I was living there I didn’t notice much of a focus on winemaking. We went back up last year and the wineries there just blew me away. It is just so cool to see what people are producing up there. We found a lot of Rhone producers and a lot of great Barbera.

When and how did you get into wine?

My parents were always really into wine, not in a professional sense, but we always had wine open for dinner. I grew up with wine and was surrounded by people in the wine industry. Wine was never an industry that seemed overly romantic, it always seemed attainable.

When you went to Cal Poly, was your intention to become a Winemaker?

It was a rather serendipitous turn of events because both of my parents went to Cal Poly, and had met there so I always knew I was going to go there. Originally I applied for business but was only accepted after I reapplied under ag-business with an intention of later switching my major. After taking a few of the ag-business classes I realized that I really liked the people in that major and if they were any indication of the people I was going to be working with professionally for the rest of my career I decided, I can do this. So I stayed in ag-business and thanks to my advisor’s recommendation I tried wine and viticulture which turned out to be a great fit.

Can you tell me a little about how you started working at Tablas Creek?

Initially when I was going to school at Cal Poly I knew I really wanted to work at a winery and I applied to Tablas Creek. I had been wine tasting here and the Esprit Blanc, in particular, changed the way I thought about wine, not just in Paso Robles, but I fell in love with the Esprit Blanc and the other Tablas wines too. At the time, the only available job at Tablas Creek was a greeter at the door of the tasting room. I had just turned 21 and I knew that being a greeter wasn’t what I wanted to do but it was where I wanted to do it. After a while, I was able to worm my way into the tasting room which I really loved. I loved being able to talk to people about wine and about all of the crazy things I was learning about at Cal Poly. Then when I graduated I knew I wanted to go into production and thankfully Tablas Creek created a cellar position for me. That was at the end of 2007 and I’ve been here ever since.

Why did you transition from the business side to wine making?

I think it was mostly growing up with a more tomboy sensibility; I always liked the idea of a challenging physical job and being able to create a tangible physical object at the end of the day: this is what I made with my hands today. I really liked the idea of creating something, especially if it’s something that you’re really proud of.

What is your general winemaking philosophy?

I think it’s to make the best wine you possibly can. I have definitely adopted the Tablas Creek philosophy which is that it starts in the vineyard. The way that we do things in the vineyard is so labor intensive, handpicked… everything is hand-done, in the cellar too, we don’t have the high tech equipment that some of the newer wineries do. Everything is very traditional. We are actually touching every single berry that goes into the tanks and I think that makes a difference. I am surrounded by very passionate people and it’s very infections. You can’t help to love what you do.

Who are your favorite winemakers in history, through personal account, or their wines?

Growing up I always liked the Au Bon Climat wines. The things that Jim Clendenen does with his wines and that winery are incredible. Those wines have always been so consistently good, consistently beautiful and elegant. John Alban, I mean, he’s John Alban! Those two guys are just historically notable. They don’t just make wines to follow trends they both commit to consistency and quality.

What’s your favorite wine region in the world – other than your own?

That definitely changes, but for the last couple of years, I’ve really been into the wines of Portugal mostly because they are lesser known, especially here, and you have to hunt them out. And when you do find them, a lot of them are rustic, and I really like that. The wines are not overly polished, they’re cool and country. I love the earthiness, the smokiness. And going to Portugal a couple of years ago and being able to understand the wine within the context of its culture, its cuisine and understand the terrior more intimately was just so great. It makes so much more sense when you have that complete picture.

What’s the best wine you’ve ever tasted? The most interesting?

The best wine I ever tasted was a 1985 Stags Leap cabernet. My parents had purchased it, as it was my birth year, and on my 21st birthday my parents took me to Napa. We had an over-the-top fantastic tasting experience and for dinner that night we opened that bottle of ‘85, it was such a great experience, being there with my parents and celebrating with them like that. That is one thing about winemaking that I really love is having the ability to create something, like an Esprit or a Panoplie that a parent may buy for their child’s birthday and having a hand in someone else’s experience... their celebration.

How do you spend your days off?

It depends on the season; my husband Trevor and I are going up to Mammoth on opening weekend. In the winter we are skiing a lot. In the summer we do a lot of paddle boarding and hiking both here and in Mammoth. We like to spend time with our Labrador.

How do you define success?

If you go to bed every night and think, “that was a killer day” then that is success. I think being happy with where you are in life and really enjoying the people that you surround yourself with, I can’t really think of any better way to go through your day than that.